{"id":57601,"date":"2010-11-15T09:26:34","date_gmt":"2010-11-15T09:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/utu.org\/?p=156"},"modified":"2010-11-15T09:26:34","modified_gmt":"2010-11-15T09:26:34","slug":"lame-duck-legislation-crucial-for-utu-members","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.smart-union.org\/lame-duck-legislation-crucial-for-utu-members\/","title":{"rendered":"Lame-duck legislation crucial for UTU members","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON \u2013 A number of issues important to UTU members and working families is on tap for debate and vote this week as Congress returns for a lame-duck session.<\/p>\n
It is called a lame-duck session because House and Senate members who lost their seats in the Nov. 2 election remain in office until Dec. 31.<\/p>\n
It is often said that lame-duck sessions are the most difficult for finding compromise — crucial to the democratic process — because those who lost the election are unhappy and know they are going home; while many Republicans want issues to be held over for the new Republican House majority and smaller Democratic Senate majority to consider when 100 new and largely Republican lawmakers take their seats in January.<\/p>\n
Here is a summary of the most important issues to UTU members:<\/p>\n
Instead, Congress has passed temporary extensions of last year’s spending legislation \u2013 the current extension expiring Dec. 3.<\/p>\n
Failure to pass new spending legislation \u2013 or a further extension of last year’s spending bills until at least March 2011 \u2013 could result in the complete shutdown of the Federal Railroad Administration, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, National Mediation Board and National Labor Relations Board.<\/p>\n
The AMT was enacted decades ago to ensure wealthy Americans, with numerous tax-avoidance schemes, pay some taxes.<\/p>\n
When the AMT was originally passed, it was not indexed for inflation. Congress perennially has passed a temporary increase in the income level subject to the AMT, but if it fails to do so, again, during the lame-duck session, 26 million middle-class families could be facing an average of $2,600 in higher taxes when they file federal returns April 15, according to the Associated Press.<\/p>\n
Legislation passed in 1997 provided for formula cuts to such payments; but, each year since, Congress has prevented those cuts from taking effect.<\/p>\n
If the lame-duck Congress fails to act, cuts of 23 percent in payments by Medicare to physicians will take place Dec. 1, and another 1.9 percent cut in those payments will take place Jan. 1.<\/p>\n
If the cuts are imposed, many physicians say they will stop accepting new Medicare patients.<\/p>\n
Calling or e-mailing your congressional lawmakers and urging them to focus on these issues would be beneficial. Click on the following link for information on how to identfiy and contact your lawmakers:<\/p>\n